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Participants observing the national anthems at the opening ceremony of the symposium © Uganda Ministry of Education and Sports

UNESCO supported the Ministry of Education and Sports of Uganda to hold its 3rd National Teacher Education Symposium under the theme: “A digitally competent teaching force for the 21st Century.” The three-day symposium from 24 to 26 March was launched by the First Lady and Minister of Education, Mrs. Janet Kataaha Museveni. The symposium was attended physically by 200 participants and virtually by about 300 participants.

Under the sub-themes of digitized delivery of teaching and learning tasks, ICT and continuous assessment and; ICT as an effective interactive pedagogical tool for teaching and learning, one of the main resolutions from the symposium is that the ministry takes the bold step of beginning to digitize the teaching content for teacher training in Uganda.

In this symposium, it was interesting to see the different initiatives the teacher training institutes have adopted in the drive to embrace digital technologies for teaching and learning, occasioned by the COVID-19 pandemic that saw all education institutions closed for about a year. UNESCO provided technical and financial support toward the third teacher symposium. The symposium is now an annual event where teacher issues are discussed and workable solutions adopted in view of SDG 4 c target. It features teachers, teacher educators, private sector, education development partners and UN agencies. 

UNESCO was represented during the symposium by the National Project Coordinator, Mr. Charles Draecabo who chaired the special panel discussion on the digital literacy. In his opening remark, Mr. Draecabo observed that ‘’In today’s digital world, nearly every career requires digital communication at some point, so equipping students with the skills to effectively and responsibly find, evaluate, communicate, and share online content is key to their futures. But the benefits of teaching your students digital literacy skills begins in the classroom right now”.

URL:

https://en.unesco.org/news/digital-literacy-takes-center-stage-3rd-national-teacher-education-symposium-uganda